Electric transfer device



C. D. LAKE.

I ELECTRIC TRANSFER DEVICE APPLICATION FILED NOV- 11. 191B. RENEWED AUG. 24, 1920.

1,372,965, Patented M:1r.29,1921.-

' 5 SHEETS-SHEET I.

INVENTOR ATT RNEYS C. D. LAKE.

ELECTRIC TRANSFER DEVICE. v APPLICATION FILED NOV-11,1918. RE NEWED AUG. 24, 1920- I 1,372,965, Patented Mar. 29, 1921.

6 SHEETSSHEET 2- CI) INVENTOR (244;, 0.' a/c gfi a e 1U. ATTORNEYS I 0.0. LAKE.

ELECTRIC TRANSFER DEVICE. APPLICATION FILED NOV I1, 1918- RENEWED AUG. 24, I920- Patented Mar. 29, 1921.

6 SHEETS-SHEET 3- c. 0. LAKE. ELECTRIC TRANSFER DEVICE. APPLICATION FILED NOV- II, 1913- RENEWED AUG. 24 I920- 1,372,965. Patented Mar. 29, 1921.

6 SHEETS-SHEET 4.

C. D. LAKE.

ELECTRIC TRANSFER DEVICE. APPLICATION FILED NOV-11.1918. RENEWED AUG. 24. 1920.

1,3?2,965, Patented Mar. 29, 1921.

6 SHEETS-SHEET 5.

C. D. LAKE.

ELECTRIC TRANSFER DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED NOV 11. 19-18. RENEWED AUG. 24, 1920.

Patented Mar. 29, 1921.,

6 SHEETSSHEET 6- ffpr 9x W Application filed November 11, 1918, Serial-No. 61,977. Renewed-August 24, 1920. Serial No. 405,754.

UN lTED' STATES PATENT OFFICE.

cLAm DENNISON LAKE, E BINGHAMTON, NEwYoE ASSIGNO MACHINE COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

' ELEcTEIc TRANSFER. DEVICE- To allwhomitmay concern: r

,.Be it known that I,,CLAIR D. ,LAKE, a citizen of the United States, residingat Binghamton, in the county of Broome and State of New. York, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Electric Transfer Devices, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

Inall forms of adding or tabulating machines a series of character or type disks are used, each of which contains ten digit types or characters andwhen any one of such disks is turned through one revolution or ten digit spaces, it moves .the disk of the next higher order one digit space. This is the wellknown carry or transfer operation common to all such machines, and hereto-' fore, such transfer, whether in machines for adding, subtracting or other llke purposes, has been efl'ected either solely or chiefly by mechanical means; Such means with absolute certainty to properly func I 4.0

are of almost infinitevariety in form and operation, but all practical forms have the same general function of moving by one step or space the disk or Wheel of the next higher order ofunits when that below it has madeone complete revolution.

The' 'object ofmy present invention is to accomplish such transfer operations in a new and improved manner, by electrical agency, instead of by mechanical means. This plan has many and important advantages, as may be seen from even a casual consideration of the conditions of use and operation that are likely to be met with in this class of machines. For example, in rapidly operating tabulating machines, me-- chanical devices can not be depended upon .tion where inertia, the rebound of contacting'parts, the quick action of spring-actuated elements and the like have to be pro-' vided against. Again, in certain forms of adding or tabulating machines asubstantial number of transfers or movements of disks by the intermediate carrying or borrowing mechanisms may occursimultaneously, and

this imposes upon the driving mechanism not only a time element, but an abnormally heavy load which, in rapid action, may not be adequately sustained. According to my improved plan, however,'no element of time is involved, as'such contacts as control the carrying or transfer are set up during the adding part of the cycle, and when the pe- Specification of Letters Patent.

cept through the agency of an electric current. than would be required for operating a single'mechanism and a far greater certainty and rapidity of action is secured. The realization of this invention involves the use of certain special means, but the nature of those which I have designed for this purpose and which I have shown in illustration of the invention will be set forth in detail in the specification which follows.

In the drawings hereto annexed, which illustrate my mechanism in its preferred and most approved form,

Figure 1 is a view in side elevation of the improved adding or* tabulating machine with the side of the casing removed, or in other words, a section of the instrument on line 1'l of Fig. 2. I

Fig. 2 is similarly a plan view of the gorking parts, ora section on line 22 of Fig. 3 is a section of the device between disks with parts unnecessary to the illustration omitted.

Fig. 4:is a view in plan of certain details.

Figs. 5, 6,. 7 and 8 are details of the transfer mechanism shown in difi'erent operative positions.

Figs. 9, 10 and 11 are diagrams illustrating the circuit connections and mechanical relations of the usual operative parts of the instrument.

It will be understood that the improvement is applicable to any machine of this general class, and that that selected for illustration is merely typical.

It'may then be assumed that the machine is an adding or tabulating apparatus contained in a casing 2, and having a series a To THE TAIBULA'I'ING of index wheels or number-bearing disks 3,

' each withten digit spaces, characters or typeand adapted to be singly, successively or simultaneously turned by any suitable means to add columns of figures. In such a machine, assuming the right hand disk to represent units, the next tens, and so on, Whenever one disk has been turned through one complete revolution or ten digit spaces, it operates, without any further movement,

' to move the disk of the next higher order one character or digit space. With the constructive details of the main device in otherrespects this application is not concerned and these will be described only so far as may benecessary for a complete understanding of the invention now under consideration. Y

There are eight counter magnets 4L for the index or register wheels 3, and these magnets are arranged in two horizontal rows and staggered in position. For each magnet thereis a vertical bar or rod '5, pivoted in the frame and carrying an armature 6 facing a magnet pole so that on the energization of any magnet itscorresponding rod 5 will be partly rotated against the force of a spring 7 This movement of the armatures f the upper row of magnets releases a clutch lever 8, having stops 9, with which i such armatures are in direct engagement, while the attractive effectof the lower magnets by turning the rods 5, accomplishes the same result by the engagement with similar stops on levers 8 of upwardly-extending projections or lugs 10 secured to rods 5. The levers 8 while thus.

normally latched, are free when'released in this wayto be moved sidewise about their pivotal points 11, by fiatsprings 12 which bear upon insulated projections on 'said levers;

These sprlngs 12 are insulated from the frame and constitute one member of a pair of contacts 13 in the circuit of a counter magnet 4, and when they arepermitted to open by the release of the lever 8, this part levers 8, with corresponding teeth on gear wheels 17, free on the shaft 15, and in gear with wheels 18 which communicate motion to the register-wheels 3.

It will be understood that the magnets 4 are energized by circuits containing contacts that are brought together through perforations in a card. The cards are punched at different points to indicate the numbers,

and said cards are passed between the contacts to setup these numbers on the register wheels for adding them The time of engagement of a clutch on the shaft 15,

in the card represents the numeral 5, the register wheel will be turned five digit spaces. If it started from zero the number it will display is 5, but should it start from any other number, say, seven, then the number it will display is 2, but it will have 'moved the wheel of the next higher order of units one digit space, and the invention of this application is in the novel means which I have devised for effecting this carrying or transfer.

By reference to Fig. 3, the transfer. mechanism may be most readily understood. Each register wheel 3 has secured to and alongside of it on the shaft 19 what may be termed an. adding wheel cam 20, which'has two raised parts or points of difierent height 21 and 22. Pivoted at 23 is a right-angled pawl 24 having a spring 25 connected therewith which travels on the periphery of its respective cam wheel 20, and this pawl is pivoted to the horizontal arm of its respective gight-angled plate 26, which is pivoted at 2 Normally, or while the pawl travelsover the lowest part of the periphery of the cam wheel 20, the plate 26 is not affected, but when the number 9 on a register wheel comes to the indicating line the lower of the two raised parts, or 21, comes under the end of the pawl and depresses its other end with the result that the vertical part of plate 26 is thrown a step to the left. When the regis-- ter wheelis advanced another digit space, the highest point of the cam wheel moves the pawl farther, with the result that'the verti" -cal end of plate 26 is moved to the left another step.

The forward top edge of the'pla'te 26 contains a series of three steps'28, the two upper rocked by an arm 34 connected by, a link 35- with a right-angled lever 36 pivoted at 37 and having a spring 38 connected therewith.

These arms are" from the normal position which it occupies during the adding part. of the cycle and raised above the normal at the end of such cycle, while once during each revolution of a register wheel the stepped end of plate 26 is shifted from its normal to two other posi tions to the left. By its-movement into the first of these other positions the top contact 29 is unlatched or released from-the first I step, and by its second movement the lower contact'30 is unlatched or released from the third step. The operation of the mechanism may now be seen by reference to Figs. 5 to 9.

Normally the contacts 29 and 30 occupy the positions shown in Fig. 3, contact 29 resting close to the edge of the first step of plate 26, and contact 30 resting well on the third step. As the register wheel turns to bring the numeral 9 to the window, the lower of the two raised surfaces or part 21 on the cam wheel 20 comes under pawl 23,.and the plate 26, being shifted, unlatches the upper contact 29, and permits this contact to drop onto the bail 31 which is then in its normal position. The. parts are then in the positions shown in Fig. 5, so long as the bail 31 is not moved,'.as it will not be during the adding part of the cycle. When thecam 40, however, lowers the bail, then the upper contact 29 drops down into engagement with contact 30 and the parts assume the position shown in Fig. 7.

If by the further movement of one step of the register wheel the character 0 is brought to the window, then the highest point of cam 20 shifts the plate 26 another step to the left and this unlatches or releases the lower contact from the third step, and both contacts 29 and 30 will thereupon rest upon the bail as shown in Fig. 6, and will continue so to do until the latter is lowered when the parts assume the positions shown in Fig. 8. In Figs. 5 and 6, both contacts are held out of engagement by the bail. In Fig. 7 the contacts 29 and 30 are in engagement, while in Fig. 8 these are separated but contact 30 has dropped onto a fixed contact 54, which underlies the other two.

We may now refer to Fig.9, which is an ordinary wiring diagram of the system for M an explanation of operation. This figure represents two tabulating or adding machines, the various appliances. and the circuits used in operating them, and bearing in mind the manner in which these machines are habitually-used and operated by punched cards, the numerals on which, indicated by the number and positions of the holes, are to be added, the following is the plan of operation.

I/Vhena punched card is inserted into the machine it moves a lever 41 and closes contacts 42. At this instant a cam 43, operated by the machine, closes contacts 44, where upon the circuit from a suitable -source 45 is closed, "energizing a counter relay 46, and the motor control relay 48, which closes contacts 47 and 49 respectively. Assuming that the machine is operating and the cards passing through it, whenever a brush 50 comes I over a perforation in a card a path for the current is established through such countermagnet as may be determined by the position or column in which said perforation lies, and the corresponding clutch is shifted to engagement and remains so during the adding, and until the break cam 51, breaks the circuit and the clutches are retracted or knocked out of engagement.

The operation up to this point is that of my counter, set forth in a pending applica tion Serial No. 250,104, filed August 16, 1918,

and is not substantially different fromthat of other counters now in common use and familiar to those skilled in this art. .It will be observed, however, that at this point; that is to say, when the clutches have been restored, the cycle of operations is not'complete, and heretofore the remaining part of the cycle has been utilized for effecting by mechanical means such carrying or transfer from one register wheel to the .next as the positions of said wheels and the conditions of adding might require. In effecting, as I do now, an electric transfer, I utilize the same portion of the cycle. I

I therefore use a carry control cam 52, which at this instant closes contacts 53, which carry the circuit to a conductor 55 connected to all of the lowermost contacts 54, Fig. 3, which lie under contacts 29 and 30. Assume for the moment, however, that no wheel is in position to expose a figure near the upper limit of O and no figures to be added require any carrying or shifting of any wheel by one step. In such case all of the contacts 29, 30 and 54 will be out of engagement and no path for the current is provided beyond the contacts 54.

It may happen, on the other hand, that any such conditions exlst as are graphical-1y repestablished, when the adding cam hasopa carrying device, but the units, tens and hundreds wheels, and all the others'which display nines will have shifted their respective plates 26 to allow the respective contacts 29 and 30to assume the positions shown 7 in Fig. 5. Thereupon, by the movement ofthe units wheel one character space, the 0 of that wheel is displayed and its adding wheel cam has brought its contacts 29, 30 and 54- into the positions shown in Fig. 6. By this action a path for the current is erated, from the contact 54.; of. the units wheel to and through the counter-magnet of the tens wheel by wire or other connection 57, and the clutch of this magnet brought into operation to shift the tens wheel one step.

But the contacts 29 and 30 of the tens wheel which at that time exhibits 9, will at that moment be in the position shown i n Fig. 7,-so that current will also pass by wire 58 to contact 29, and thence by wire 57 of the hundreds wheel through the latters counter-magnet, and that wheel also will be advanced one step.

The contacts of the hundreds wheel which is' also assumed to exhibit 9, will also be in the position shown in Fig. 5, until the driven shaft lowers the bail 31 and brings thecontacts of the said hundreds wheel into the position shown in Fig. 7, or in other words, the current will therefore pass through the counter-magnet of the thousands wheel and shift that one space. I I

It will be observed that there are other wheels of the series at 9, but unless the wheel At or near the end of the cycle of revolution of the driving shaft of the machine, the bar 31 is raised above the normal position by the lower part of the cam l0, whereby the two contacts 29 and 30 are raised by the bail sufliciently to permit the lever 26 to swing back to the right and reengage the said contacts on its first and third steps;

In Fig. 11 another possible condition is illustrated merely by way of example, but

. from what has been said these conditions and the consequent'operations due to adding will bereadily traced. 1

In the above description I have not gone into details of the constructlon, for example,

as ,\regards the means for connecting contacts, for making and breaking counter magnet and other'circuits and the like, as these are matters which are all well understood in the art. I have, in illustration of my invention, also selected a certain kind of instrument and have explained its operation only in relation to transfers necessary in adding, but I neither limit the invention to this special mechanism nor to its application to this particular purpose. I regard'it as applicable to all cases where mechanical means heretofore have been employed for carrying, borrowing or eifectingsimilar operations in any machine of this general character.

What I claim as my invention is:

1. In a machine of the kind described, the combination with each index or-registering wheel of a circuit-controller adapted'to be closed by a complete revolution of said wheel, of means for turning the wheels through one character space operated by the closure of the circuit including such means by the circuit-controller of the wheel of the next lower order of units.

2. In a machine of the kind described, the combination with each index or registering wheel of a key controlled mechanism for turning each wheel through arcs of variable extent, and means for operating the same mechanism for turning each wheel through an arc equ'al to but one character space, of electro-magnetic meansfor controlling the operation of said last named means only, operated directly by a wheel of the next lower order of units when it has made a complete revolution.

3. In a machine of the kind described, the

combination with each index or registering wheel of a cam rotating with said wheel, a cam rotating with the driving mechanism of the'machine, contacts adapted to be adusted by the conjoint action of said cams,

and carrylng or transfer means for turning each-wheel through one character space controlled by the contacts of the wheel of the next lower order of units, these parts being so arranged that as any index wheel completes one revolution, the contact adjusting means or cams'cooperate to direct a current through the transfer mechanism of the wheel of the next higher order of units.

4:. In a machine of the kind described, the combination with each index or registering wheel of an electro-magneticcarrying or transfer-mechanism for turning said wheel through one character space, a circuit in cluding such mechanism, a circuit-controller for closing such circuit, means dependent upon the rotation of the index wheel and other means dependent upon the rotation of the driving shaft of the machine, both of "driving shaft of the machine, its circuibconmechanism operative 1,372,.ecs

troller will be caused to operate the transfer mechanism of the index wheel of the next higher order of units.

5. In a machine of the kind described, the combination with each index or registering wheel of a cam wheel rotating therewith, a set of contacts set to different positions by the said cam, a driving shaft which makes one revolution for each cycle of operation of the machine, a cam wheel thereon and means controlled thereby for setting said contacts to other positions, an electro-magnetic carrying or transfer mechanism for each index wheel for turning it through the space of one character, a circuit including such mechanism and controlled by the set of contacts, these parts being adapted and arranged to close the circuit through the transfer mechanism of the wheel of the next higher order of units whenever by the operation of the machine the two cam wheels cooperate in fixing the positions of the contacts after each complete revolution of the index wheel, with which they are associated.

6. In a machine of the kind described, the combination with each index or registering wheel of contacts which are set to a given position by one complete revolution of the index wheel, a driving shaft and means connected therewith for shifting once during each revolution said contacts when set by the index wheel into a position to complete a circuit through the counter-magnet of the index wheel of the next higher order of units, whereby when a current is passed through said contacts by a complete revolution of said wheel the counter-magnet of the wheel of next higher order will be operated and that wheel advanced one step.

7. In a machine of the kind described, the combination with each of a plurality of index or registering wheels of a key controlled through a part only of each cycle of operation for turning each wheel through adding,

arcs of variable extent "for of carrying or transfer mechanism controlling the operation of the same mechanism, for turning each wheel through an are equal to but one character space, and operative only during another part or" the cycle, of electromagnetic means for controlling the operation of said carrying means only operated directly by a wheel or the next lower order of units when it has made a complete revolution.

8. In a machine of the kind described, the combination with each of a plurality oi index or registering wheels of electro-magnetic means for turning said wheels in the operation of adding, of cont-acts controlled by the conjoint action of the moving index wheels and the driving mechanism of the machine, for advancing said wheels a single step in the operation of carrying or transfer during a period in each cycle of operation other than that utilized for the turning of the wheels in the adding operation.

9. In av machine or" the kind described, the combination with each of a plurality of index or registering wheels, of means for turning each of said wheels through arcs of varying extent during the first part of each cycle or operation of the machine for adding, of means controlling the operation of the same, advancing means electro-magnetically controlled in its operation by such wheels as have made a complete revolution in the adding operation, and adapted to cause said advancing means during the latter part of each cycle to advance said wheels a single step or character space for carrying.

10. in a machine of the kind described, the combination with each of a plurality of index or registering wheels of an electro magnetic carrying or transfer means controlled in its operation by currents sent by such wheels of the next lower order of units as have made a complete revolution.

In testimony whereof I hereunto affix my signature.

CLAIR DENNISON 

